Handyman Insurance, New SBA Rule Imposes Severe Penalties for Misrepresenting Size Status
On June 28, 2013, the Small Business Administration (“SBA”) issued a Final Rule relating to the penalties involved when a contractor misrepresents its small business size status. While the current regulations provide that a contractor might suffer certain penalties for “knowingly misrepresenting” its small business status, they offer little guidance concerning what those penalties might be. Moreover, the current regulations fail to identify what type of conduct constitutes a “knowing misrepresentation.” The Final Rule seeks to clarify these points, and both increases the severity of the penalties associated with a contractor’s misrepresentation of its small business status, and broadens the scope of conduct that might expose a contractor to penalties.